Once Upon a Time
by Perdidit Amor
Summary: I'd always had crappy luck, so in all honesty, I expected nothing less than that when it came to Edward Cullen... BxE
1. There Was a Girl

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight.**

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There was a loud thunk as I unceremoniously landed on the ground. I groaned from my position on the floor. It took just about all my energy to slam my hand down on the ancient alarm clock that rested on the floor beside me. I laid on the ground for a few seconds, contemplating whether I should just go back to sleep or not. A loud voice shrieking my name from downstairs answered my question, "Isabella!"

Blearily, I got up and stumbled downstairs where my mother was waiting. She stood there, her hands folded across her chest with an impatient scowl painted upon her face. Lauren and Jessica, my two adopted sisters, flanked her at either side both imitating her expression. Finally Renee spoke. "What's the meaning of this?"

I blankly looked at her for a few seconds before I realized there were still dirty dishes from last night's dinner scattered by the sink, my lips formed into a perfect "o"; it was my job to clean them. In fact, it was my job to clean _everything_. I was treated as more of a maid than a family member. Renee pursed her lips and threw something down on the table before leaving, slamming the door shut on her way.

"You're screwed." Lauren snickered while looking at the list of errands that was now lying on the table.

Jessica threw me a smirk from over her shoulder as she grabbed the keys to the car Renee had gotten her. "Bye, bitch."

The two she-devils, the nickname I'd given them, strutted away. In dismay, I looked on while they sped out of the driveway in a shiny car. Unfair, completely unfair… that basically summarizes the treatment I get in this household. Sadly, I seem to be stuck with three females that seem to be in an interminable state of PMS; just peachy, right? For a few seconds, I debated on punching a hole through the wall. I decided against it though, considering I'd probably end up breaking my hand instead.

I muttered a stream of profanities under my breath as I went about with getting ready. When I looked at the clock and the volume of said profanities doubled. There was no way I'd make it to school on time at this rate. There was a knock on the door and I yanked it open, ready to yell at whoever was there.

My friend Travis held his hands up as if he knew what I was going to do. I laughed and hugged him instead. He grinned down at me, "My spidy-senses were tingling and I had a feeling you'd need a ride today."

Travis was tall, muscled, and lean. His hair was an inky black and he had a few tattoos peeking out from underneath his dark clothing. In all honesty, before I had gotten to know him I was scared shitless of him. He was wide-known around the school as a rebel, which seemed to gain him some popularity around the students although everyone was too afraid of approaching him. When Lauren and Jessica spread a rumor around the school that I had STDs and everyone started treating me like a social pariah, it was Travis that came to my rescue. He took me under his wing and just like that, we became the best of friends.

"Thank god. I love your sixth sense," I mumbled as I raced to the passenger seat of his expensive car. Travis' parents were rich, and I mean super freaking rich. They had a habit of trying to buy out Travis' affection towards them hence the nice ride. The guy couldn't complain, he got the coolest stuff.

As he got into the driver's seat and began driving, Travis' expression became somber. "This is the last time…"

I looked down at my hands and tried to ignore the tears pooling in my eyes. My voice was soft, "I know."

"Hey," he said as he stretched over and grabbed one of my hands, "We'll keep in touch. Just because I'm moving, doesn't mean we're going to lose contact. And anytime there are any assholes bothering you, I'll come over and beat them up."

I stared at my best friend, my _only _friend. "I'm still going to miss you."

He said nothing, instead just tightened his grip on my hand showing that he knew exactly what I meant. I blinked away the tears and instead grinned at him, "Let's just ditch today. We'll spend the entire day together doing whatever we want to do. How does that sound?"

"Perfect," He smiled. Suddenly a mischievous look settled itself upon his features. With a roll of his hand, we suddenly made a sharp u-turn and were going in the opposite direction. "I know just what to do."

"Aren't you going to tell me?" I raised an eyebrow. Instead of answering he gave me a look that clearly said you'll see. I took a good look at my surroundings, trying to get an idea of where he was heading. When I realized that I had no clue where we now where, I gave a sigh of defeat and settled back in my seat.

"Close your eyes." Travis said.

"What?"

"Close your eyes." He insisted. I laughed lightly at his antics before obeying and shutting my eyes. I felt the car take a few turns before it slowed down and finally settled to a stop. Travis' warm breath blew out on my cheek as he whispered in my ear, "You can open them now."

My eyelids fluttered open and I drank in the sight of a carnival. Involuntarily a shriek of delight escaped my lips. Travis chuckled and grabbed my hand, "Come on!"

Throughout the day we talked about everything and anything, we always touched in some way whether it have been by linking arms together or playfully swatting at each other, and we looked at and did everything the carnival had to offer us. It was twilight and we both stood leaning in to each other, staring in awe at the prettiness of the lit up tents and attractions. I interlocked fingers with Travis. "Your flight will be leaving soon."

Travis stared down at me and I was startled to see his eye were shiny with tears. "I don't want to leave. I may not like Arizona all that much, but hell, I'd stay here for a billion years if I could be with my best friend."

"I don't want you to leave either. I'd never ever want you to leave, but you have to. All I know, is that I'm going to be pretending that my best friend is beside me every day." I smiled softly at him and touched his cheek lightly. Then I took his hand and placed it on the tattoo I knew he had on his chest of my name. He had come up with the idea that we get each other's names tattooed on each other because he thought it would be like having those best friend necklaces, except less embarrassing because he thought it wasn't masculine to wear necklaces. I had been hesitant about that one, but finally caved and now had his initials printed on my shoulder blade.

Finally, we turned away from the sight of the carnival and drove back. It was when Travis stopped at my house that I realized I wouldn't be able to see him off at the airport, I sucked in a sharp breath. Despite my attempts at being optimistic, I burst in to tears when we both got out of the car and I hugged him so hard that I think he had a hard time breathing. Either way, Travis was Travis… he didn't complain, instead he clutched me just as hard. It became apparent that he wouldn't be able to delay the departure any longer, so we exchanged kisses on the cheeks and a final hug before he got into his car and drove off.

I stood outside for a while, staring at the empty street. I took a breath; it was time to put on my big girl panties. Finally, I turned and walked towards the house, towards Renee… alone.

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**Hey everyone! So here is the first chapter of my rewrite, whoo! Here's to hoping you all like it. The next one or two chapters will be more introductory and continue to explain the life Bella has in Phoenix and then we'll meet the gang! I'd love to hear some input about the story so far, so reviews are always welcomed!  
Until next time xx**


	2. Apologies

**Author's Note**

Hello loves! Given recent circumstances, I'd like to inform you all that _Once Upon a Time _will be put on hold. As of late, I've become increasingly dissatisfied with the result of the

writing. I'm aiming to completely start fresh with this, so the chapters will most likely be trashed and the story line tweaked. Given that, the rewrite (of a rewrite… Lovely) will be

put on the back burner as I begin some non-cannon works. As a shout out to everyone who alerted/favorited/etc, thank you so much! I was overwhelmed with the response I got

and I'm thankful to have such a brilliant audience.


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